Tougher penalties for online criminals suggested

17:07' 06/05/2008 (GMT+7)
In the first half of 2007, IT experts recorded 124 new viruses and nearly 432,000 computers infected with spyware and more than 2.8 others attacked by viruses through USB and Yahoo Messenger.
VietNamNet Bridge – Online criminals are developing broadly while the laws on this field are insufficient. Violators who cause serious consequences are imprisoned for 2-7 years only and fines are no more than VND100 million ($6,200).
Online criminals in Vietnam are on the rise in number and getting more serious. In the first half of 2007, IT experts recorded 124 new viruses and nearly 432,000 computers infected with spyware and more than 2.8 others attacked by viruses through USB and Yahoo Messenger. The websites of many companies were attacked.
The most serious case was the one discovered in early January 2008, in which some hi-tech criminals were arrested for stealing passwords of international credit cards. The latest attack on website chodientu.com forced this e-commerce site to idle for a long time, causing heavy losses for the firm.
However, experts said that the skills of Vietnamese online criminals are not high. Most local hackers are very young and they don’t think about the consequences of their actions. They often use “primitive” techniques so they are discovered easily.
Nguyen Quang Huy, who is being charged with attacking chodientu.com, and is considered the top hacker in Vietnam, also committed fundamental mistakes when he used his home PC and didn’t delete log file when he seized control of the attacked server
However, Vietnamese online criminals are getting more professional; most crimes now take place in the online environment, not on the PCs of victims. Hackers tend to use more spyware and worms and attack small businesses, which have poor network security.
Losses of US$5.625 million per year
Losses for computer users caused by viruses are estimated at around VND496,000/person/year. If each computer needs $2 to deal with a virus, with 2.8 million infected PCs last year, the total losses were $5.6 million.
One of the reasons that facilitate the development of online criminals is a shortage of laws to combat this kind of criminal. Online criminals are developing broadly while the laws on this field are insufficient. Violators who cause serious consequences are imprisoned for 2-7 years only and fines are no more than VND100 million ($6,200). These penalties are very gentle and do not match the losses caused by online criminals.